Live music venue could be moving to uptown Oklahoma City

A concert promoter who previously worked with Granada Theater in Dallas is seeking to open a live music venue along Uptown 23rd.

Jerod Miller declined to comment on the project Tuesday other than to say his effort is “preliminary” and in early stages of planning. He has, however, applied to the City Planning Department to seek a change in zoning for three store fronts at 415, 417 and 421 NW 23 to allow for live music and alcohol sales.

Marty Dillon, owner of the Tower Theatre, opposes plans to open a live music venue to the east of the theater, noting it won't have any parking. CHRIS LANDSBERGER

The store fronts are located immediately east of the strip's historic Tower Theatre, and both Miller and the theater's owner, Marty Dillon, confirmed the event venue was previously looked at for that space.

Dillon has owned the Tower Theatre since 2006 and the redevelopment of that long-vacant property is considered key to a full revival of NW 23 between Broadway and Classen Boulevard.

Dillon, who owns parking to the south of his theater, said Tuesday he's worried that Miller's plan calls for no parking. The storefronts span 17,587 square feet, and neighbors report they've been told by Miller the project will include an art gallery and a venue for 200 to 300 people.

“I'm concerned about parking more than anything,” Dillon said. “They would only have three or four parking spaces in front. There is no other parking anywhere else to be had.”

Parking could get even tighter along Uptown 23rd if Dillon succeeds in moving forward with redevelopment of the Tower Theatre.

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Steve Lackmeyer is a reporter and columnist who started his career at The Oklahoman in 1990. Since then, he has won numerous awards for his coverage, which included the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, the city's Metropolitan...